Peaches
by infy
Summary: When Ginchiyo is near-fatally injured, the Tachibana must rely on one of their rivals to help both Ginchiyo return safely to a village where she can be helped, and Muneshige to realize that some things cannot be done alone.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi there! This is going to be kind of an ongoing story, and i really hope i get around to finishing it because wow gosh i really like the idea!**

**I hope you guys enjoy it.**

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Muneshige, for the past ten minutes, had been staring at the back of Ginchiyo's horse, and not because he wanted to; she had refused to speak or look at him ever since they left Miyao Castle in Chugoku. Of course not. Obviously Muneshige had been too hasty in accepting Motonari's request to go pick peaches for the feast he was preparing. He assumed Ginchiyo would agree to it—Muneshige's wife was never one to pass up a good meal—but apparently it was much too bothersome for her. _Ah well. You know what happens when you assume._

Ginchiyo finally turned her head to glance behind her. "We've probably gone about ten miles and I haven't seen one peach tree."

Muneshige rubbed the back of his neck. "I think I remember seeing one right around here."

"You said that an hour ago."

"You know how my memory is."

Ginchiyo spat in frustration and turned around again. "I can't believe you agreed to do this. I'm a very busy woman. I don't have all day to go pick peaches for some lazy old windbag's dinner." She kicked her horse and it picked up its gait further away from Muneshige. He matched her pace and pulled up beside her.

"Think of it as a strengthening of political ties. Plus he's preparing a feast. That means we're rewarded with food. Speaking of which," Muneshige reached over and pulled a wrapped item out of one of his saddlebags and tossed it to Ginchiyo. "Eat. You haven't eaten in over three hours."

Ginchiyo caught whatever he threw to her and glared in his direction. "I'm not hungry."

Muneshige looked at her expectantly. "You have to eat. Even if you're not hungry."

"Says who?"

"Says everyone who knows anything about..." he paused a moment, trying to phrase his next words delicately. He knew how sensitive she was about it. "Your condition."

She paused, and with a knowing sigh, opened up the wrapped package and took a bite of the rice ball inside it. Muneshige could sense even her chewing motions laden with a certain bitterness. Of all people, it had to be her. Nobody took their own weakness harder than Ginchiyo Tachibana. "I hate it," he heard her mumble between bites.

"I do too, my dear, but that is unfortunately the way it is." Muneshige sighed, closing his saddlebag and glancing around sidelong for a peach tree. Eager to change the subject, he began his next sentence with a long, drawn out _um_."By the way... what do peach trees look like?"

Ginchiyo cast him a vicious glare. "You mean to tell me that you dragged us ten miles away from anything resembling civilization to find a peach tree that you can't even identify?"

Muneshige sighed. Guilty as charged. "Well, um... It has peaches on it."

Ginchiyo once again spat in disgust. "I can't believe you. You're an idiot." Muneshige couldn't say anything in response, considering in this case he agreed with her wholeheartedly. He simply let a quiet laugh trill from his throat.

"How hard can it be to find a peach tree? I bet we'll find one in the next few minutes," Muneshige said, an optimistic look on his face.

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It had been another hour until they reached a hill with a large peach tree perched at the top of it. Ginchiyo, needless to say, refused to speak to her husband during that time, convinced that they had passed a good few that went unnoticed on the way there. Just as predictably, Muneshige was the first to break the pervading silence. "Those are peaches, alright." The obvious statement provoked a cold and piercing glance from his wife.

She nonchalantly motioned behind them with her thumb to the black mare she made the trip on, who was currently content with grazing near the base of the hill. "And that's a horse."

Muneshige ignored her and placed his hand on a rather small peach hanging from the tip of the branch, intent on picking it. A "hey" from Ginchiyo stopped him. He glanced over at her. "Yes?"

"Haven't you ever picked fruit before? Everyone knows the best peaches are at the top of the tree."

He glanced up. The tips of the topmost branches seemed to graze the clouds themselves. There was no way he was getting to that part of the tree. He could climb it, but he didn't trust himself enough not to fall. Ginchiyo obviously did not share the sentiment; when he glanced back down, she was already rapidly scaling the branches. "Wait," he said, raising a hand up after her as if he were trying to reach her.

Ginchiyo swung her leg over a branch and looked down at him with a huff. "What is it this time? I suppose you and your infinite knowledge are going to tell me this is a pear tree and not a peach tree."

"No, I'm going to tell you that it's a very long way down if you fall."

"Well, thank you for that bit of information, I will certainly file that away," she grumbled, and pulled herself up onto the next branch, and the next, as Muneshige kept a watchful eye on her. Eventually she reached near the top of the tree, and scooted up a branch to reach for a bunch of peaches hanging from the end. She glanced down at her husband, the size of a small mouse from where she was perched. Without noticing it, a smug smirk snaked across Ginchiyo's face. "Care to comment?"

Muneshige's eyes never wavered. An uneasy feeling crept up from the ground, through his feet, and his fingers twitched with every somersault his stomach made. "I would rather you picked the fruit closer to the ground."

"I'm not about to come all this way and bring back sub-par fruit just to get sent back again. The best peaches are at the top of the tree."

"Just..." Muneshige paused, his feet cemented to the ground, his legs rigid. "Be careful."

Ginchiyo scooted closer on the branch, which bowed a bit, and she locked her ankles around it to keep herself steady, laying on her stomach and attempting to reach for the peaches. "I've been able to take care of myself for years before we were married. I'm not about to hide behind you just because you're a man and I'm a feeble little woman," she grumbled, scooting closer and closer to the peaches.

The branch creaked, and Muneshige shuddered. "Ginchiyo, please, you're going to hurt yourself." He once again found himself ignored. Another creak as she moved closer. This one louder. Almost like a...

_Crack._

The branch lurched for a moment, and Ginchiyo lost her footing, yelping in surprise as she hugged the branch closer; she dangled precariously for a moment before the entire branch gave way, breaking off the tree. Muneshige's eyes widened and his pupils shrank."Ginchiyo!" His senses could only make out her pained yells as he tried to register what was happening—it didn't quite occur to him until she had landed on the ground with a sickening thud and an painful wail, the branch landing on top of her not long after. She instinctively curled her body, attempting to suppress the cries of agony that fought to tear from her throat, and the grass around her rapidly stained red.

Muneshige's feet carried him to her as fast as they could, not that he willed them to—he realized his instincts had taken over the moment the branch broke—and he dropped to all fours, scrambling to get to her in a panic. Her usually intense brown eyes were open in a blank stare, filled with terror as she fought for breath and fought against crying out in pain, and he rapidly scanned her body for something he could do to ease her in at least some way. He noticed a large, leaking gash in her side, and his hands hovered just above it as his mind reeled through everything he was taught about first-aid. He took a deep breath and quickly removed his jinbaori and wadded it up in his hands. Attempting to keep his voice calm, he leaned toward Ginchiyo's face and took her shaky hand in his. Her poorly suppressed groans of pain ruined his efforts; his voice broke as he loudly told her, "This is going to hurt, okay?" No response, as he expected, but he didn't have time to wonder if it would be okay with her. The bleeding had to be stopped, and stopped now. He firmly pressed the cloth jinbaori onto the wound, and was met with a thrash, a tight squeeze of his hand, and a muffled cry.

His breath became heavy again and he struggled through her thrashes to keep the pressure on. "Ginchiyo, it's alright, I'm right here. Scream if you have to."

She opened her mouth, but a sound didn't escape.

Muneshige raised his voice in desperation. "Scream, Ginchiyo! Let it out!"

An agonized shriek tore from Ginchiyo's throat, and Muneshige gritted his teeth; the sound of her in pain was torturous to him. He desperately tried to keep the pressure on her wound, and her hands obsessively tore at the grass beneath her for what seemed like hours until the cloth was nearly soaked through with blood. Ginchiyo, in her thrashing, had torn into the ground with her hands, even dug into the soil by the time the bleeding stopped; her wails had died down to soft moans, too exhausted to cry out any louder.

Finally. Muneshige sat back, and remembered how to breathe again, his bloody jinbaori still clutched in his fist. His mind still ran at a million miles per hour, agonizing over what to do next. He glanced over at his horse near the top of the hill, a white stallion staring intently at his master, and as Muneshige called him nearer with a whistle, he still felt none of his usual rationality returning to him. He reached into his saddlebag and noticed his hands shaking as he fished in the bag for a blanket and his spare sarashi—he always kept an extra in case either of them needed to change clothes on the road—and he noticed that no number of deep breaths he took could calm him in the slightest way. _Calm down_, he told himself. _Calm down, Muneshige._

He slowly lifted her into a sitting position, and carefully wrapped the sarashi around her waist like a bandage, being sure to keep pressure on the wound itself and attempting to no avail to be affected by the distressed look on her face and the weak sounds escaping from her every time she took a breath. "There, see...? It's okay. We'll get you some help, I promise." He spoke to her softly, his voice shaking as much as his hands, trying to soothe her.

Ginchiyo's mare approached them and sat in wait for a motion to follow. Muneshige patted the horse's nose reassuringly before wrapping the shivering Ginchiyo in a blanket, and standing and scooping her into his arms, careful not to aggravate the wound on her side. Even if he had, he wouldn't have been able to know. Ginchiyo had exhausted herself enough that she couldn't even lift her own arms to steady herself against his chest, let alone make a noise signifying pain.

He slowly lifted her onto his horse and got on himself, steadying her limp body between his legs, and signaled for his horse to begin moving. Ginchiyo felt the motion of plodding hooves, slow and careful. Her eyes, previously blank and stuck wide open, now drooped; she blinked slowly, one eye at a time, and her breathing was shallow and uneven. She shut her eyes to concentrate on finding a way to breathe without encountering searing pain, but she found herself instead drifting in and out of consciousness. Muneshige's words barely reached her—all she knew was that he was speaking to her. She attempted to make a noise in response to whatever he was saying; whether it was heard or not was unbeknownst to her. Ginchiyo pulled the blanket closer to her neck and once more concentrated on her breathing and listening to Muneshige's soft voice through the sound of the chilly and biting wind blowing against them.

"You have to stay awake, Ginchiyo," Muneshige continued, making sure his horse walked slowly and smoothly as possible back the direction they came. He cast glances behind him every once in a while to make sure Ginchiyo's horse was following in close pursuit. "Stay with me."

Ginchiyo mumbled in response, but it went unheard over a loud clap of thunder. Muneshige's attention shifted from his wife to the sky above them; gray clouds had shifted and covered the sky, and stray sparks of lightning dotted the landscape, while the few stray raindrops that dotted their faces grew in number until the impending storm made its entrance. The wind blew more fiercely with force enough to keep Muneshige from opening his eyes. He had to get Ginchiyo out of this storm somehow, but that meant more time lost to get her help. He was out of options, and he cast a glance up at the threatening sky and sent up a silent prayer as he directed the horses towards the woods off the path back to Chugoku.

"My Lord Dosetsu... Your daughter needs your help now. Send someone, send something, send anything. Please."

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**Once again, i'm going to remind you that historically, Ginchiyo was diabetic, and so when i say "condition" that's what i'm referring to. **

**Anyway, please expect another chapter up pretty soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**New chapter is officially up! **

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The scent of foliage was usually one of the most attractive scents to Ginchiyo—when she was younger and needed to get away from all her problems, the first place she would go was the forest. But now the musty odor of the plants mixed with the chill of the rain was an affront to whatever of her senses still remained intact; the mix of aromas assaulting her nose, along with a headache severe enough she believed her eyes would fall out should she open them and searing pain every time she took a breath, forcibly focused every last bit of her concentration on not vomiting.

Muneshige still attempted to speak to her to keep her conscious, asking her questions that required more than a simple grunt in acknowledgment; she heard all the words, but some of them she couldn't understand—she remembered him asking her what her favorite color was, just for the sake of keeping her from slipping away, but in her condition she had forgotten entirely what color was. She answered with a mumbled "peaches" in response. It was the first thing to come to her mind, and she knew it was the wrong answer, but she still couldn't think of the right one, and that scared her.

She felt the horse pause its motions for a moment, and she finally noticed the light sprinkle of rain that fell to the forest floor from the leaves of the tall trees above them. There must have been a huge storm outside. Muneshige dismounted his horse, his hand still resting on her thigh to keep her steady. Her eyes fluttered open to look at him, and his heart wrenched. He had never seen such pain in her eyes before. Trying to swallow his fear, he took one of her hands in his, and she struggled to keep her balance on the horse. Mustering up the last of her strength, she dismounted the horse herself; the pain overwhelmed her and brought her to her knees. He knelt beside her, his hand on her back. "Can you stand?"

Ginchiyo looked at him, acknowledging nothing more than the fact that he was speaking to her. She held her gaze on his as even as possible for as long as she could. "Can you stand up, Ginchiyo?" he repeated, his voice tender and gentle. He stood, his hand holding hers, and she tried to pull herself up. She stood straight for a moment before collapsing again, and Muneshige caught her before she hit the ground, clutching the makeshift sarashi bandage on her side again. He knelt once more, steadying her with his own shaking hands. She slumped into him, too exhausted to flex another muscle.

They were wide open to an attack, even surrounded by all this thick brush. Muneshige remained alert, scoping out every sight, every smell, every snap of a twig that could signal the approach of a wild beast or a rogue robber. He heard the call of a cuckoo, the chirp of a cricket. Nothing out of the ordinary. "Ginchiyo," he whispered, his voice trembling. "Stay awake, okay? Let's just talk. We can talk, right?"

Ginchiyo made a soft noise in response.

"Good," Muneshige continued. "Hey Ginchiyo, what's your favorite animal? Can you tell me that?"

Ginchiyo didn't move an inch, not even a twitch for a moment, before she quietly mumbled, "Cats... I... like cats..."

"I like cats too," he replied. While he was thinking up another question for her, she stiffened in his arms. He gasped for a moment and clutched her shoulders in his hands in fear. _What's going on now? _He held her delicately, like an egg he was afraid of dropping, as she seized again and again, gasping desperately for breath. He repeated her name, trying to snap her out of it, but she didn't hear it. Her senses had shut down; he could tell from her completely blank eyes that she wasn't taking anything in at all. Muneshige's throat clenched as he shut his eyes tightly, holding his wife while her violent tremors subsided. It seemed to be hours before they did completely, but Muneshige knew it had only been a few short moments. Her breathing was heavy, but shallow by the end of her seizure; her muscles had become so worn that she couldn't bear the weight of her own head anymore, and it hung slack to the side as she slowly slipped from consciousness.

Muneshige's senses once again went on standby. There was no way he would let her die like this. She would survive. She would survive at any cost. He would make sure of it.

A popping sound of a snapped twig near the large brush they hid behind quickly grabbed Muneshige's attention, and his head jerked up, all his focus directed on what seemed like footsteps disturbing the underbrush, getting closer, and closer, and closer...

He glanced at his horse a few feet away from him, a sheath holding his sword tied to the outside of the saddlebag; laying Ginchiyo down gently, her head rested on Muneshige's folded jinbaori covered in dried blood, he quickly drew his sword from the sheath, lying in wait until the footsteps came close enough. A large shadow. If it was a human at all, it was definitely a brutish one. Muneshige's grip tightened on his sword. He had to protect her. It was all he could do.

Muneshige waited another few seconds before he rushed the shadow, and his blade clashed repeatedly with what appeared to be a spear. The figure was massive, even by Muneshige's reckoning—it takes a specifically rare genetic specimen to tower over a man of about six-foot-two like the figure towered over Muneshige. The bright golden horns on its head made it look nearly demonic, but Muneshige didn't concentrate on that. He swung his sword madly, his drive to protect what was dear to him taking over above even his own rationality. The figure fought back, and Muneshige's sword clashed with the figure's spear one final time before they were deadlocked.

Muneshige's rage subsided when he made out the stone-like facial features of someone he knew; lips curled into a barbaric snarl, intense dark brown eyes focused on nothing but the kill. Yes, this was definitely him.

Muneshige backed off for a moment. "Lord Tadakatsu."

Tadakatsu brandished his spear, an intense fire in his eyes, his muscles tense. "If you've the nerve to sucker-punch me, you'd best have the nerve to follow through with it. Come! We will do battle!"

Muneshige's sword dropped to his side. "I thought you were a bandit." At this, Tadakatsu's eyes narrowed, and he lowered his spear. "Now isn't the time, I'm afraid." He took a step back toward the thicket, and Tadakatsu took a step forward to match him, their gazes meeting and never wavering. The two men stared at each other for a few moments before Tadakatsu finally spoke.

"You're covered in blood."

Muneshige raised his eyebrows and glanced down at his hands. His gloves were soaked in Ginchiyo's blood, as was the dou armor on his chest. "I... it..." he stammered.

Tadakatsu's expression softened. "Tachibana, you're usually much more articulate than this. Something is wrong."

"Ginchiyo is..."

"Is what?"

"She's been hurt. Badly." Muneshige sighed, glancing behind him toward the thicket hiding his wife and the horses. He returned his attention to Tadakatsu, narrowing his eyes skeptically. "Why are you here?"

"My Lord sent me to search for an escaped horse. What happened to—" Tadakatsu nearly asked for the circumstances behind Ginchiyo's injury, but thought better of it. It wasn't his place to meddle in Muneshige's affairs. He paused and eyed Muneshige's posture before looking him in the eye once again. He had never seen Muneshige slouched as much as he was at that moment. Muneshige's jade-green gaze was severe, his eyes never broke their contact with Tadakatsu's—Tadakatsu sensed a desperate, almost pleading aura about Muneshige's eyes, as if they themselves were speaking to him on bended knee. Tadakatsu extended a massive bear-like paw toward Muneshige. "If I may, is Lady Tachibana..."

Muneshige cut him off. "She's never been injured this badly." He paused for a moment and turned around, peeling back the branches of the thicket. "I can't leave her alone any longer than I have. Excuse me." He disappeared into the foliage.

Tadakatsu paused for a moment. He couldn't do nothing. Dosetsu was a good friend of his; Tadakatsu felt he would be dishonoring the man's memory if he were to leave them there by themselves. Not to mention, Ginchiyo was a dear friend of Ina's. What would she think? And what if Ina were in that situation? Tadakatsu sighed. His mind was made up. The escaped horse will survive. This situation required his immediate attention.

He stepped through the brush and made his way through the thick foliage to find Muneshige knelt next to an unconscious Ginchiyo. He was putting pressure on her side for some reason—perhaps she cut herself? It couldn't just be a cut. He wouldn't panic over that. Tadakatsu cleared his throat, catching Muneshige's attention. Muneshige narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "What are you doing here?"

"I've come to see Dosetsu's daughter's condition for myself." He knelt beside the two of them. "And I know a fair amount about first aid. I may be able to help her."

Muneshige tensed for a moment. Could he trust this man? He had only truly met Tadakatsu on the battlefield; what he saw of him there—a brutish, hulking beast that destroyed everything in his path—he didn't want touching his wife in her condition. But his eyes on the field of war belied the certain softness he saw in them now, what Muneshige saw to be a glint of humanity. He slowly drew back and let Tadakatsu have a look at her. "As you wish." Tadakatsu leaned forward. "Please, try to be as gentle as you can," Muneshige added.

Tadakatsu removed a glove from his hand and gently touched Ginchiyo's forehead. She was sweating profusely, her face still hot from her seizure. He sighed quietly, removing his hand. "What happened to her?"

"She fell out of a tree."

"A tree?"

"We were picking peaches for Lord Motonari, and..." Muneshige trailed off, the memory of seeing Ginchiyo toppling out of the tree, slamming into branches on the way down before landing square on her back, returning to him without warning. He attempted to regain his composure, but Tadakatsu still noticed Muneshige's trembling hands. "She climbed to the top of the tree, about 9 meters up, and the branch broke from underneath her. She hit herself a lot on the way down, and landed on her back." Muneshige motioned to the bloody sarashi wrapped around her waist. "She cut herself on one of the branches, I think."

Tadakatsu began undressing the wound. Muneshige raised his eyebrows and attempted to push his hands away. "What are you doing?!"

Tadakatsu swatted Muneshige's hands away. "I have to look at the wound. There could be debris in it if she cut it on a branch. Go get me some water. I have to wash off the blood." Muneshige didn't budge, and Tadakatsu shot him an intimidating glare. "I said I need water, boy."

Muneshige narrowed his eyes. "Can I trust you?"

Tadakatsu sighed, his expression softening again as he unraveled the last of the sarashi, carefully peeling it away from the dried blood adhering it to the wound. "Her father was a close friend of mine, and she is a close friend of my daughter's. I would be doing my conscience a disservice if I did not try to help. Please, try to trust me." With one final exchange of looks, Muneshige took a breath and made his way over to the saddlebags on Ginchiyo's horse, where they kept their containers of water. Tadakatsu examined the gash. It was wide and deep, but he couldn't gather much from the flaps of torn leather obstructing his view. Muneshige might not like it, but the only way to assess her external damage would be to...

"Here."

Tadakatsu looked up to see Muneshige holding a container of water. Tadakatsu nodded in thanks, took it, and set it down near him. He glanced down at the gash on Ginchiyo's side one more time before looking back up at Muneshige. "Pardon my forwardness, but does she usually wear a sarashi?"

Muneshige raised an eyebrow. "Usually, yes. What are you getting at?"

"I have to get a better look at her wound."

"So you want to take off her clothes."

Tadakatsu glared at him. "Don't misinterpret my intentions." Rather than waiting for Muneshige's permission, he removed her helmet, lifted her head and untied her nodowa, quickly tossing them both aside near Muneshige's feet. Muneshige paused for a moment to take a breath before helping Tadakatsu remove the sode on her shoulders. Eventually they had stripped her down to the sarashi binding her breasts, and Tadakatsu and Muneshige both hovered over her, scanning her body for injuries; there were many—Tadakatsu counted the bruises already forming on every inch of her sides and her stomach—and a gigantic purple and red bruise had formed near the base of her rib cage. Tadakatsu's eyes focused downward to the massive slice in her side covered with dried blood, and he gently sprinkled some water over her wound, directing it with his hand. The wound was clean after a few rinses, and it was only then that Muneshige saw how bad it really was. It was a deep crimson color, and Muneshige, even in the darkness of the forest, could see bits of fat and muscle protruding from it, along with splinters of stray wood that had embedded themselves into the surrounding area. It had split wide enough that Muneshige could see inside it, and the sight made his knees weak and nearly turned him physically ill. He knelt to keep himself from falling over.

Tadakatsu placed a hand on Muneshige's shoulder. "If you need to look away-"

He violently shook his head in response. "I'm fine."

Ginchiyo tensed again, causing Muneshige to squeeze her hand and mentally prepare himself for another seizure. Instead, her eyes blinked open the slightest bit to look at him. "Muneshige..." she mumbled, nearly inaudibly through the sound of the crying cicadas in the forest.

Muneshige's throat tightened. All he could manage to choke out was, "I'm here."

Her breathing was shallow, and she winced with every breath she took. Her chest moved quickly, as if her body itself wouldn't allow her to take a deep breath. She opened her mouth to speak, and Muneshige leaned in closer. "I... can't breathe..."

Tadakatsu inhaled deeply. "We must make haste to Chugoku. Miyau Castle is the nearest place to here with a doctor."

"We were headed that way anyway," Muneshige looked up at him, his hands still clutching Ginchiyo's.

Tadakatsu once again glanced down at Ginchiyo, whose face tightened and teeth gritted in pain.

His eyes finally met Muneshige's, and his face shifted; Muneshige looked at him now with a unyielding sort of determination, as if to affirm that he absolutely had to save her at any cost. Tadakatsu met his expression with a grave one. "She has trauma to her chest, as well," He stood, walking over to Ginchiyo's horse and tightening the saddle. Muneshige's eyes followed him as he mounted the horse with ease. Following his lead, Muneshige swaddled his wife up in the blanket again, and lifted her onto his horse, careful not to aggravate her injuries, before mounting the horse again himself. "If we fail to reach Chugoku by nightfall," Tadakatsu continued, pulling on and tying his glove again as he seized the reins. "I can guarantee that she will die."

"She will not die," Muneshige muttered, steadying his wife against him before signaling his horse to follow Tadakatsu. "I won't let her."

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**I'll try to get another chapter up soon, but this is midterms week, so I don't know if I can promise much, ahaha.**

**Stay tuned, and thank you for reading! 3**


	3. Chapter 3

This one's a bit short, but I can assure you the hiatus is over and there's more on the way!

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The wind bit mercilessly at Muneshige's ears and nose, but he didn't feel most of it. The storm winds their horses were fighting against tasted bitter, but that's all he noticed. The rest of his senses were all completely spent on Ginchiyo; _how is her temperature...? Does she feel warm?_ He sniffed the air. No scent of blood. She seemed as if she were sleeping now... s_leeping, or unconscious? Better take a look at her eyes... no, her teeth are gritted. She's suppressing the pain. She's awake. Her breathing sounds harsh... is her airway blocked...?_

He felt his entire reason for going on now was for her. His purpose would return to him once he was sure she was safe.

Tadakatsu took up the rear, matching Muneshige's slow pace. "At this rate, making it back to Chugoku before sunset is wishful thinking at best," he yelled over the biting wind.

Muneshige furrowed his brow. "What would you rather us do, then?"

"What?"

Muneshige raised his voice over the wind. "I said, what would you rather us do?!" He craned his neck to look back at the older man. "You said it yourself, she has trauma to her chest. Every step is hurting her. Do you really think she'll survive going any faster?!"

Tadakatsu grunted, and he pulled up beside Muneshige. "She won't survive going this pace either." The simple statement frustrated Muneshige, and he couldn't explain why. He attempted to chalk it up to him being slightly on edge. _Deep breaths. Deep breaths, Muneshige. No. Munetora. _Muneshige's lips quirked for a moment at the thought. It was at these particular moments of weakness where his wife felt that he didn't deserve the Tachibana name, and would thus call him Munetora, his name before they were married. Usually it straightened him up, but today was the exception. She was in his hands—to think himself incapable of being worthwhile to her frightened him greatly.

How long had it been since her accident...?

He paused a moment and reached for his saddlebag. Tadakatsu glared at him and growled. "What is it now...?!"

"She has to eat."

"Can't it wait? We're not making time as it is, and-"

Muneshige caught him off guard with a ferocious glare. "She has. To eat," he repeated, his words sharp.

"I don't understand you!" Tadakatsu snarled. "You seem to be less concerned with whether your wife survives and more preoccupied with making sure she suffers in comfort."

Muneshige took a deep breath to calm himself. "I am ensuring she survives. Even women have to eat. It's a little thing we humans call _nutrition." _He unwrapped the dango he took from his saddlebag and began trying to wake Ginchiyo up to eat. She moaned softly, but didn't open her eyes, and he straightened her up against his chest gently and slowly before feeding her a piece at a time.

Tadakatsu screwed up his face at the display. "You being impertinent at a time like this is disgusting. It seems to me as though I care about your wife more than you do."

"You don't understand." Muneshige's voice raised over the wind again, which had died down slightly. He attempted to face away from it to block out the chill from Ginchiyo as she ate. This may seem trivial, but you don't understand. This keeps her alive and well as much as-"

Tadakatsu spat. "As much as a sword through the gut. You may as well begin digging her grave here; you seem so intent on killing your wife that I'm not going to stop you." He dismounted Ginchiyo's horse. "We seem to have different goals in mind," he sighed exasperatedly before heading the opposite direction.

Muneshige gritted his teeth and attempted to suppress his rising anger. "Fine. I've done well on my own anyway."

"I've seen otherwise. You didn't bother to clean out her wound before bandaging it. Then she had a seizure and you kept her upright. Not only that but you moved her from the spot she fell in the first place before assessing any possible injury to her spine. I'll leave you with your death wish, considering you obviously don't know what you're doing." Muneshige took more and more deep breaths at these words; they tore him to shreds inside, and as usual, he attempted to keep calm. Tadakatsu paused before uttering his final parting words, a vicious final blow to Muneshige's ego. "Any honorable man would be humbled by an offer of aid, but I see now that your apathy towards anything but yourself is too great to accept it." He took a step forward and began walking away.

That was it. Something inside Muneshige snapped. Had his body not been Ginchiyo's support, Muneshige was sure he would have launched himself off the horse to leap on Tadakatsu and beat him senseless with his bare hands. Or he would try to. Instead, the usually calm and laid-back Muneshige's voice, he was sure, was now raised louder than ever before in his life. "Get back here!" he barked, his eyes ablaze. Tadakatsu glanced behind him as Muneshige continued. "You can insult me as much as you like. My appearance, my comportment, my manner of speaking. But don't you _ever_ lay a word upon my dedication to my wife and my family, or I swear upon my honor as a Tachibana that your blood will be the next on my sword!"

Unfazed, Tadakatsu shot back. "Then why do you insist on delaying us?! Do you not understand that every moment she spends _eating," _he spat the word out with utter contempt, "could have been spent moving her closer to a doctor? To safety? She can eat when we get there!"

"Don't you think I know that?!" Muneshige's voice calmed considerably, but was still vicious compared to his usual self. Normally he would have made a joke about his temperament being a direct result of spending too much time with his wife, but he was too furious for the notion to even become a possibility. "Don't you think I want her alive more than anyone else in the world? And don't you think I know more about her and what she needs than you do?!"

A pause, which both men took advantage of to attempt to calm themselves down.

Tadakatsu approached the horse again with a sigh and an attempt to conceal his frustration, and he was the first to speak. "Then tell me. What could possibly be a good reason for stopping in the middle of a road simply to have a snack?"

"She has diabetes."

The wind was the only sound that tore through the two of them, and however strong it was, it couldn't blow away the tension.

Tadakatsu paused, attempting to phrase his next words delicately. He wasn't expecting that. All that came out of his mouth was, "Diabetes...?"

Muneshige glanced down at her somberly and realized that in his rage he had thrown the remains of the dango on the ground. The whole situation was so ridiculous; it had only hit him now, and he unconsciously let out a laugh to ease the tension. "She doesn't like anybody to know, lest they think she's weak. Don't let her know I told you." Tadakatsu remained silent as he mounted the horse—Muneshige was sure he didn't know how to respond, so he continued. "She has to eat every few hours to keep steady. The doctors say she may not live to be 35. I'm determined to prove otherwise." With that, he repositioned Ginchiyo comfortably against him before setting off again. The pace this time was brisk, and Muneshige held her steady against him to keep her from feeling too much pain.

The next hour or so was spent in complete silence. Tadakatsu rode behind the Tachibanas, thinking to himself about the events that just transpired. Thinking of his own family, and what he would be thinking and feeling and doing were he in Muneshige's situation. Thinking of what was probably Ginchiyo's greatest kept secret and how she still managed through it all to be such an intimidating force all on her own. And most importantly to Tadakatsu, wondering if he one day would understand as much as the children in front of him about the true meaning of love, honor, and duty.


	4. Chapter 4

Muneshige inhaled deeply. The air was crisp, and the wind had died down considerably. He felt at least a little more comfortable at a somewhat quicker pace now that they weren't fighting the wind, especially since they were almost back at Chugoku. Judging by the scenery, at this pace he figured they would be back at the castle in half an hour. She just had to last that long. He kept Ginchiyo steady against him, and she gripped the legs of his pants at her sides tightly, trying to fight back the pain. Her strength was dwindling, and it wouldn't be long before she lost consciousness again. _Thirty minutes. Just thirty minutes, Ginchiyo. Please. I believe in you. Do it for me. _He leaned in closer to her ear and told her so. "We're so close. Please, try to hold on. I know you can do it," he whispered gently, and she made a small noise.

Tadakatsu led the way this time, casting glances behind him to see if Muneshige was matching his pace. Even at his quicker stride, Muneshige was still plodding along slowly compared to the older man. "Hey," Tadakatsu finally spoke.

Muneshige glanced up, his attention temporarily distracted from Ginchiyo against him.

"What did we discuss? You are going much too slow. She'll die at this pace."

Muneshige sighed and shook his head, his supporting arm around her shoulders; her fingers lightly ghosted along his arm and attempted to touch it for comfort. "You saw the injuries to her chest. She can't breathe. I'm not going any faster than this, or she'll die that way too."

"You're underestimating the value of time in her situation. She may have flail chest, and if that's the case, we need to get her medical attention as soon as possible," Tadakatsu retorted with a huff. "Are we really going to go through this again?"

"At this pace, we'll be there in only half an hour," Muneshige sighed. "She's tough. I know she can last that long, and I'm not jeopardizing her chances."

"You're the most stubborn kind of fool."

Ginchiyo began gasping and wheezing, but attempted to keep it undercover as the men argued. She didn't have the time, nor the energy to be frustrated with them. Her concentration was invested in keeping her breaths even and keeping from blacking out. She tensed, and Muneshige didn't notice her distress until she started to cough violently, and he shifted his attention to her. Spatters of blood launched themselves from her throat; finally when her coughs ceased, Muneshige invested all his energy in keeping himself calm, and wiped the blood from her lips with his jinbaori. His hands refused to stop shaking—he had seen more than he ever cared to that day. _Ginchiyo...! Oh, god, no, what's going on now?!_ All his reeling thoughts hadn't even allowed him to notice Tadakatsu stationing himself next to them, removing his gloves and urgently barking out instructions to Muneshige. He didn't hear what was said, and instead offered what Muneshige believed to be a blank stare and what Tadakatsu saw to be a forcibly indifferent gaze glazed over with panic.

Tadakatsu took a breath. "Muneshige, listen to me. Panicking will not serve any purpose."

"I'm not panicking, I'm perfectly calm, but I'm not the one coughing up blood. Help her." His voice was hasty, desperate, and it cracked slightly, belying any of his words.

Tadakatsu was about to remark that he wasn't born yesterday, but knew it wouldn't help. "Quickly, sit her up straight, and take off the blanket. I need to palpate her ribs."

Muneshige stuck out his arm, blocking Tadakatsu from Ginchiyo. "Don't touch her. She's in enough pain," he seethed, his expression hardening.

"She may have punctured her lung, and if that's the case, we don't have thirty minutes to make it back before she suffocates." Tadakatsu's voice was a harsh whisper, which struck Muneshige full force. His pupils shrank.

Muneshige nodded, the notion having not quite settled yet, and he quickly sat his wife up straight against his chest. Blood continued to dribble out the side of her mouth, which Muneshige promptly wiped away, whispering in her ear and attempting to calm her down—she was gasping for air, her muscles tense and her body spasmed in its attempts to find oxygen. "It's okay, my dear, you'll be okay. I..." He was about to say "I promise" but he quickly realized there was no way to say for sure if he would be able to keep it. That fact destroyed him inside, and he fought back the torrent of tears threatening to burst out of him.

Tadakatsu still remained calm, but he managed to brush his hands over Ginchiyo's rib cage, and, sure enough, found an impaction near her shoulder blade. Sensing his distress, he immediately rushed back to the horse he was riding and mounted it, only turning back in time enough to urgently call out to Muneshige. "We need to go, and we need to go _now._" He quickly sped off past Muneshige at full gallop.

"Wait, what? Why?!" Muneshige called out after him, and quickly straightened Ginchiyo's body against his. "Hold on, Ginchiyo... We're going to go faster." With a swift kick to his horse, he slipped both of his arms underneath hers to support her, kept both his hands on the reins, and broke into a gallop. As the horse's pace quickened, the ride gradually became smoother, but Ginchiyo's moans of pain didn't. Muneshige gritted his teeth and tried his best to steady her; she coughed up more blood, the wind spattering it all over the two of them.

"... S-sorry..." she wheezed, tension gathering in her chest with every breath, and Muneshige didn't respond. He didn't even say a word until he got within Tadakatsu's earshot.

"Lord Tadakatsu!" he shouted, almost angrily. Ginchiyo shut her eyes. She had never seen him like this before.

Tadakatsu glanced back at Muneshige. "Quickly!" he grunted, prodding Ginchiyo's horse to go faster, and Muneshige steadily matched his pace. "We have an hour at best, before pneumothorax sets in."

"I don't know what that means!" Muneshige snapped. "And you'd best stop keeping me in the dark about what in the world is going on! Pneumo-what?!"

Tadakatsu was forced to raise his voice over the hoofbeats when he responded to Muneshige."Her chest is filling with the excess air pouring out of the hole in her lung!"

Muneshige paused, casting a worried glance down at Ginchiyo. Her eyes were open wide in what he assumed was shock—what breaths she took were small and pained, and her face was red. He looked back up, and called forward to Tadakatsu, "What does that do to our prognosis?!"

Tadakatsu refused to answer, refused to even look at Muneshige.

"Tadakatsu!"

"... It may be a lost cause."

His eyes widened. "What?!"

"She will suffocate if she is not helped immediately. And we-" Tadakatsu was interrupted by a rush of wind as Muneshige darted past him at a breakneck pace that Tadakatsu couldn't match atop Ginchiyo's horse.

Muneshige needed no more information from him, and immediately tuned out everything else around him. Tadakatsu may have given up, but he refused. Muneshige would save his wife, the light of his house, the booming thunder that shook his world, even if he had to do it alone. He had no other option. Victory suited a Tachibana, and like Ginchiyo, like Dosetsu, like every other great warrior of his clan, he would accept nothing short of it.

He didn't even glance behind him to see if Tadakatsu Honda was still keeping up with him.


	5. Chapter 5

Muneshige wasn't entirely sure if time was flying or if it had slowed to a crawl. The only thing that registered in his mind was the castle within his line of sight. Ginchiyo at this point had stopped making noise beyond a wheeze every time she breathed. They were close.

"Hang in there..." he pleaded quietly, desperately, as the horse's hooves pounded against the ground. "Ginchiyo, you're doing so well, just a few more seconds."

He felt her nod against his chest-she was still conscious, but whether it would stay that way for long was anyone's guess. The castle was within earshot, if he yelled loud enough. He noticed tiny specks near the entrance; Motonari had told him he would have a few of his retainers meet him outside, he realized. Perfect. He swallowed for a moment before inhaling deeply. "Hey...!" he shouted out, as loud as he could. None of the people surrounding the castle could hear him.

He tried again, his voice cracking. "Hey...! Somebody...!" The heads of a few of the men started turning, and Muneshige would have waved to get their attention if he wasn't so concerned with keeping Ginchiyo steady on the horse, and all he could do was try and get them to run for help. "We need a doctor...!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. Two of the three men looked around, and they split off in 3 directions. One man went back inside, one ran off, presumably to find a doctor, and the other ran towards Muneshige and Ginchiyo, tripping slightly on the way over. It was one of the most relieving sights he had ever seen.

The horse skidded to a stop right next to the young man-he seemed familiar, but Muneshige had neither the patience nor the time to identify which of Motonari's sons he was speaking to. "Taka... Teru..." he shook his head violently and dismounted the horse, holding the barely conscious Ginchiyo in his arms. The boy swept his long bangs out of his face to look at the sight before him, and he let out a light gasp. Muneshige looked down as well. She was in bad shape.

"Takamoto," he stated plainly. "That's not important, though. Get her inside, we can try to help her there."

Muneshige nodded once, and rushed with him toward the castle, not caring if Tadakatsu had caught up with them yet. He couldn't help but wonder in the back of his mind how Takamoto could see anything with all his hair in his face, but he navigated the path back to the castle expertly.

As they reached the entrance, the man that went back inside the castle came back out with Motonari in tow. "Takamoto!" he called out, and Muneshige and Takamoto approached him. "What is going on?" Despite his even voice and the curious tilt of his head, Motonari's eyes seemed as though he understood that something was wrong. As if on prompt, Ginchiyo coughed again, blood launching from her mouth, and wheezing as she attempted to inhale again. Motonari's eyes widened and they met Muneshige's; the horror Muneshige felt was mirrored in Motonari's face, and he immediately ushered them both inside the castle, instructing Takamoto to take care of Muneshige's horse.

"Quickly, over here." Muneshige carried Ginchiyo into a small room in the east wing of the castle's first floor, apparently an infirmary of sorts, at Motonari's prompting. "We can help her in here. Terumoto is getting a doctor." It was a well-kept room, the supplies were clean and there were four cots neatly spread out in the room.

Gently, Muneshige laid Ginchiyo on her back on one of the cots, grabbing a bit of cloth and wiping the blood off of her mouth. He sighed heavily, finally realizing that they had actually made it. She made it. He shakily grasped her hand, kissing her forehead. "You did it," he breathed, and she squeezed his hand without a word. "I'm so proud of you. Just hang on a little longer, the doctors are coming."

"What happened to her...?" Motonari ventured, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "She looks like she took a fall."

"She did," Muneshige replied, his voice grave, not taking his eyes off of her. "She climbed a tree to start picking peaches-"

"Then I'm at fault."

Muneshige shook his head. "No, my lord, you had no idea this would happen."

Motonari sighed, his breath drawn out, and he rubbed the back of his neck. "I should have known she would be so reckless. What a fool I am."

"My lord," Muneshige repeated himself, his words firmer, and his expression hardened as he turned to look at Motonari. "If anybody's, it's my fault. I could have stopped her from climbing so high."

"We both know how stubborn she is."

"Yes, of course." Muneshige chuckled lightly at Motonari's response, but he felt no amusement-just horror. That was all he had felt all day. But he had, like always, tried to keep his anxieties under wraps. Forcing them behind an indifferent, blank stare, even though he knew he had never been this scared in his life. Even more so, despite his expectations, when a crowd of three people, flanked by Motonari's son, Terumoto, rushed into the room.

"Here they are, o-dono! Sorry we took so long!" Terumoto announced loudly, waiting for an order by the door. Motonari nodded, and Terumoto bowed and took his leave.

The men pushed Muneshige aside and immediately began prodding and poking at Ginchiyo's body. It took him a moment to register that they were doctors, but even though they were, when one of them pushed on Ginchiyo's wound a little too hard and made her cry out slightly, Muneshige couldn't help but feel anger burn in the pit of his stomach.

"What the hell are you doing to her!?" he demanded, trying in vain to keep his voice calm. There was no response, not even a glance acknowledging his presence; the doctors simply muttered anatomical terms that Muneshige couldn't understand to each other without giving him the time of day. He gritted his teeth, preparing to lunge at them and beat them away from Ginchiyo until they learned to be a little gentler, but Motonari stepped in front of him.

"I think you should leave, Muneshige."

"I..." he began, his breath hitching in his chest. "N-no! I can't leave her, not like this...!"

Motonari firmly gripped Muneshige's shoulders with his hands. "Muneshige," he stated calmly. "Listen to me." Muneshige took a deep breath, furrowing his brow and attempting to look in Ginchiyo's direction, but Motonari drew his eyes back to meet his. "Ginchiyo is in good hands. You have to trust them. I'll make sure nothing happens to her, but this environment with you in it is too stressful for both you and her."

"But..."

"Muneshige... go outside. I'll supervise." Motonari's voice was gentle, but firm, and Muneshige looked the other direction. "It will be okay." Motonari breathed, attempting to console him. The dark-haired man led Muneshige outside the door, and Muneshige's legs went on autopilot. His mind was blank beyond thoughts of Ginchiyo-the thought that he would never see her face again, her eyes, those rare times when she let out that laugh of hers, the thought that he would never be able to kiss her lips again-and it destroyed him inside. He slumped against the wall just outside the door and slid down into a sitting position without a word. Motonari knelt and put his hand on his friend's. "I will make sure they do everything they can to save her."

Muneshige didn't even look up as Motonari withdrew into the infirmary, and he didn't look up as Tadakatsu poked his head into the entrance to the hallway that led to the room.

"You certainly left in a hurry." Tadakatsu remarked, making his way over to Muneshige's side. "Mouri's son told me there were doctors on the way."

"They're..." Muneshige trailed off, swallowing because he found his throat was dry. "They're in there. She did well on the way over. I'm proud." His voice rose to no more than a quiet mumble, enough that Tadakatsu had to lean in and listen intently to get even the gist of what he was saying. His horror that he refused to let escape belied the blank face he had maintained throughout the entire ordeal, and Tadakatsu, hulking brute though he was, was far from an idiot. He had taken notice of this a while ago.

"Hey, by the way," Muneshige muttered. "Why did you help us?"

Tadakatsu grunted before his response. "I've told you. Lady Ginchiyo's father was a good friend of mine, and-"

"Bull. The man raised me, and he talked about you maybe once or twice. You and Lord Dosetsu were nothing more than casual acquaintances. What's the real reason?"

Tadakatsu sighed, removing his helmet. "Because I was you once. And you were making the same grave mistakes I did."

"Mistakes...?"

"Do you love your wife?" Tadakatsu took a seat next to Muneshige with his helmet next to him, glancing over at him to gauge his reaction. An odd question, but one that had to be asked.

"More than anything." Muneshige's face remained blank as he answered without any hint of hesitation.

"You don't look it. You look..." Tadakatsu sighed, not taking his eyes off of Muneshige's unreadable expression. "I was going to say you look... indifferent."

Muneshige's face hardened at the thought. "I assure you I'm not." He took a breath. "I love her more than any word in any language could ever say. I want to be with her every moment of my life and never leave her side. I'll be in love with her until the day I die. And the thought that I might have been able to prevent her pain destroys me. If she dies from this..." his voice cracked slightly, causing him to pause and clear his throat, "if she dies, I'll never forgive myself. I can't bear to see her in pain. Let alone... this."

"Have you told her this?" Tadakatsu pressed on, putting a hand on Muneshige's shoulder.

"Of course I've told her I love her. She's my wife. I tell her every day."

"But like this. With so much vulnerability."

Muneshige paused, raising an eyebrow and glancing over at the man next to him.

"I was like you," Tadakatsu finally broke the silence. "I was always supposed to be the stoic man. Even in the face of adversity." Muneshige met his eyes for the first time, feigning interest. "Ina's mother died when Ina was six years old. Her death was long, drawn out. Painful." Tadakatsu sighed. Muneshige had never heard his voice so gentle. "My little girl had to watch it all. We all knew she was going to die, and Ina and her mother would cry almost every day. I kept it in, because emotion isn't something men are supposed to express."

There was a pause, and Muneshige filled it with a sigh. "You were taught the same thing as me, then."

Tadakatsu nodded, shutting his eyes and exhaling through his nose. "It killed me, you know. Watching that."

"I know you love Ina."

Tadakatsu shook his head. "You can't know the love a father has for his daughter. Not until you become a father. And you get a new sort of love for the mother of your child as well. You want to protect them at any cost. And I couldn't protect either of them. Ina's mother would tell me some days that she wished she would die just to save Ina from the pain of watching her. And I won't lie, as horrible as it sounds; some days, I wished the same. I told her so."

Muneshige's brow furrowed, and he crossed his arms. "Given the situation..."

"I told her I loved her only once as she died. But my face remained stoic, even as I held one hand, and watched Ina break down into tears as she held the other, and we watched her fade away in silence."

"People grieve in different ways, Lord Tadaka-"

"Finally, after she died, when I was alone, when I was sure nobody, not even Ina, not even Lord Ieyasu, not even the smallest bird, was around, I shed a tear. That was the only time. The pain of losing her, the fact my little girl was left without a mother to care for her, and the fact that she died probably thinking that she won't be missed... It was too much to handle." Tadakatsu cleared his throat, looking away. "I wished at that moment that I wasn't weak."

"Weak, my lord?"

"I wished I had given myself to my family instead of my upbringing. Muneshige... it takes a man to remain strong through watching a loved one in pain. But it takes a stronger man to reveal himself to his loved ones through emotion. It takes a stronger man than I."

Muneshige's brow furrowed. "Why... why are you telling me this...?"

Tadakatsu's face hardened, and he clutched Muneshige's shoulder in his huge hand. "You've attempted to be strong through this entire ordeal, because you believed showing emotion makes you weak. Even here, you refuse to reveal your true feelings. You're scared. I know. You don't want to lose her."

Muneshige shut his eyes tightly, shaking his head without a word.

"So was I. But nobody knew that. Not even Ina's mother as she slowly slipped away through my fingers. I wanted her to know, but it seems I was more afraid of being weak than I was of losing the woman I loved. You say Lady Ginchiyo knows how much you love her, but... does she really...?"

Muneshige furrowed his brow. He had always tried to be the lighthearted joker. The one who remained calm and collected through any situation. Muneshige had always been the one to laugh at an inopportune time, to crack a joke in the middle of a battle. He had never in his life felt so scared, so helpless. But even so, his smiling mask didn't ever disappear. Not one time. Was it reflex? Was it subconscious? Or did he really not feel as much for his wife as he thought he did? How could anyone who loved their wife smile while she was in Ginchiyo's situation? It made Muneshige sick to his stomach. He had told her he loved her, but always as a formality. His fake smile, and now, his blank face, hid so many demons, but suppressed so many beautiful words and emotions that could come flooding out at any moment.

But, of course, that was not a man. His father had always asserted that. That is not what a man does. Men should be strong and stoic, and that is weakness. But to Tadakatsu Honda, that mask Muneshige always wore was paper-thin. He shut his eyes tightly, fighting off the tears that welled up in his eyes.

_I'm so scared. I love her so much, and I don't want her to go. Not now. I could have saved her. I could have stopped her from hurting herself. But I didn't, and now she's paying for it. I feel so guilty. _He wanted nothing more than to cry, but his ego wouldn't let him.

"I know how you feel, Lord Muneshige. Ginchiyo needs to as well." He rose from the wall, grabbing his helmet from his side. "With that, I must go. There is a horse escaped from our stables that I must attend to." He turned, walking out of the hallway, leaving Muneshige alone to ruminate on his words.


End file.
